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NOVA; Mystery of Easter Island

09/19/2012

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Series

NOVA

Program

Mystery of Easter Island

Program Number

3914

Series Description

Premiered March 1974 NOVA is a general-interest documentary series that addresses a single science issue each week. Billed as "science adventures for curious grown-ups" when it first aired in March, 1974, NOVA continues to offer an informative and entertaining approach to a challenging subject. 1996 marked NOVA's 23rd season, which makes it the longest-running science program on national television. It is also one of television's most acclaimed series, having won every major television award, most of them many times over. Series release date: 3/3/1974

Program Description

A remote, bleak speck of rock in the middle of the Pacific, Easter Island, or Rapa Nui, has mystified the world ever since the first Europeans arrived in 1722. How and why did the ancient islanders build and move nearly 900 giant statues, or moai, weighing up to 86 tons? And how did they transform a presumed paradise into a treeless wasteland, bringing ruin upon their island and themselves? NOVA explores controversial recent claims that challenge decades of previous thinking about the islanders, who have been accused of everything from ecocide to cannibalism. Among the radical new theories is that the islanders used ropes to “walk” the statues upright, like moving a fridge. With the help of an accurate 15-ton replica statue, a NOVA team sets out to test this high-risk, seemingly unlikely theory — serving up plenty of action and surprises in this fresh investigation of one of the ancient world’s most intriguing enigmas.

A Production of NOVA and National Geographic Television in association with Committee Films.

Duration

00:56:46

Asset Type

Broadcast program

Media Type

Video

Genres

Documentary

Topics

Science

Citation

Chicago: “NOVA; Mystery of Easter Island,” 09/19/2012, GBH Archives, accessed July 27, 2024, http://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/V_7B5F0B8F674F4703B998DE5B159DF401.

MLA: “NOVA; Mystery of Easter Island.” 09/19/2012. GBH Archives. Web. July 27, 2024. <http://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/V_7B5F0B8F674F4703B998DE5B159DF401>.

APA: NOVA; Mystery of Easter Island. Boston, MA: GBH Archives. Retrieved from http://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/V_7B5F0B8F674F4703B998DE5B159DF401